Orlando came to Scotiabank Arena missing Paolo Banchero, Jalen Suggs and Jonathan Isaac, and still led by nine in the first quarter. Toronto's reply was a 10-0 run, and by the final buzzer the margin was 30, with RJ Barrett at 25 points, nine rebounds and six assists.
The Turn in the First
The start was uneven. Toronto led 7-4 before the Magic ran off eight straight to go up 12-7, and Darko Rajakovic called timeout after six of them. Orlando pushed the gap to nine. The game turned late in the quarter: trailing 21-13, the Raptors scored 10 unanswered in under two minutes to lead 23-21, and they closed the period up 32-25. Franz Wagner, Orlando's leading scorer with 15 points and five assists, had already given the ball away four times in his first 11 minutes. That told you how short-handed Orlando's creation was without its two primary ball handlers.
Grading the Night
Barrett gets an A. He hit all three of his three-point attempts in his first nine minutes, a welcome sight from a shooter who had made 9.1 percent from deep across the first three games, and he finished as the game's top scorer while also running the offense. Scottie Barnes and Immanuel Quickley were each plus-seven over their first 11 minutes, the best marks in the opening stretch. The bench earns a B-plus: Trayce Jackson-Davis was plus-10 in four minutes, and Jamison Battle was plus-nine in seven with a three on his only attempt. Ja'Kobe Walter gets a C. He was minus-10 in his first nine minutes, the worst mark on the team, and his workload has climbed from 21.5 to 33.7 minutes a night over his last five games. That is a lot of court time for a 22-year-old to absorb while his defensive minutes are still taking shape.
Same Opponent, Then West
The win lifts Toronto to fifth in the East, a game and a half clear of 11th, with Charlotte sixth and Orlando tenth. Both teams get two days off before Friday's rematch at home in the Cup, and the Magic will arrive no healthier. After that the schedule gets harder: the Lakers on November 1 and the Clippers the next night, then Denver on November 4 and Milwaukee on November 6. Kawhi Leonard's estimated return is November 23, so the whole trip runs through Barrett and Barnes. Nate Bittle's target date of November 2 could add a body in the frontcourt for the second night of that back-to-back.
Who led the Raptors in the 129-99 win over the Magic?
RJ Barrett led Toronto with 25 points, nine rebounds and six assists. Franz Wagner led Orlando with 15 points.
When is Kawhi Leonard expected back for the Raptors?
His left knee has him listed as out, with an estimated return date of November 23. That means he misses Friday's Magic rematch and the four-game road trip that follows.
